Subject: Ottawa Announces Spending Measures With Vote Looming 
Date: Published: 9/23/88 52 lines
Source:  Wall Street Journal.  Copyright Dow Jones & Co. Inc. 

    Ottawa Announces
    Spending Measures
    With Vote Looming
    ----  
    By John Urquhart
    Staff Reporter of The Wall Street Journal

    OTTAWA -- Canada's Conservative government, facing a
 likely autumn election, piled up further spending commitments
 that threaten its deficit-reduction goals.
    Prime Minister Brian Mulroney and his cabinet ministers
 announced yesterday that the government will make
 compensation payments totaling about 300 million Canadian
 dollars (US$246.6 million) to redress injustices to Japanese
 Canadians during World War II, when many were forced to leave
 their homes on the Pacific coast.  It also will contribute
 C$150 million toward a proposed natural-gas pipeline between
 the Canadian mainland and Vancouver Island.
    The Conservatives also formally served notice that they
 will use their big House of Commons majority to push through
 legislation Monday providing for C$4 billion in government
 spending on a child-care program over the next seven years.
    In recent months the Mulroney government also has
 announced plans for large-scale spending on environmental
 cleanup projects, oil development ventures, AIDS research,
 drought relief for farmers and regional economic-development
 assistance.
    The opposition Liberal Party said cabinet ministers made
 spending announcements totaling C$12.3 billion between May 20
 and Sept.  9.  Most of the spending would be over several
 years.
    Canadian business groups and international agencies have
 been urging the federal government to curb its spending
 because of the government's sharply rising debt.  Net federal
 government debt has risen to more than 40% of economic
 output, from about 16% in 1980.
    The deficit declined C$2.5 billion in the year ended March
 31, to C$28.1 billion, the third consecutive year it
 narrowed.  But critics say the deficit should be much lower
 for a country in the sixth year of an economic expansion.
    The deficit, however, ranks low among election issues.  Mr. 
 Mulroney is expected to call an election soon, possibly for
 late November.

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